REVEALED: These West Midlands police stations face the axe under £5m cost-cutting plan
Twenty-four police stations – including several in the Black Country – are to be axed under plans by West Midlands Police to save £5 million.
Stations to close in the Black Country include Aldridge, Sedgley, Tipton and Wednesfield.
None of the stations are open to the public.
The proposal, which is yet to be finalised, will see the force share more buildings with West Midlands Fire Service.
Officers already work from Haden Cross Fire Station, in Cradley Heath, following the closure of Old Hill Police Station.
Further plans to share bases with councils and the NHS are also being looked at.
WATCH: Alex Ross and Pete Madeley on what the plans mean
A meeting of the Strategic Policing and Crime Board will be held on Tuesday where the plans will be outlined.
Local police chiefs will then hold a month-long 'engagement period with their communities' before the decision comes before a committee on March 20.
Which stations will close?
Acocks Green; Balsall Heath; Shard End; Kingstanding; Sutton Coldfield; Harborne; Quinton; Digbeth; Handsworth; Nechells; Canley; Foleshill; Willenhall (Chase Ave, Coventry); Solihull; Sedgley; Oldbury; Smethwick; Tipton; Wednesbury; Aldridge; Wednesfield; Edgbaston; Prouds Lane, Bilston, and Princip Street.
Although none of the affected stations are open to the public, many of them did have public counters until only three years ago.
Smethwick had been open to the public 24/7, Aldridge and Wednesfield seven days a week, Sedgley and Wednesbury five days a week and Tipton four days a week.
Now the stations face being sold off or released from leases by the force.
The move will leave 16 police bases in the Black Country – seven in Dudley, four in Walsall, four in Wolverhampton, and one in Sandwell.
Ten will have public counters, including Wolverhampton, Bloxwich, Brierley Hill and West Bromwich.
Why will the stations be closed?
West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) David Jamieson is behind the move, which comes at a time when recorded crime in the region has risen 14 per cent.
He said the money saved will go towards protecting the jobs of 100 police officers. The number of officers will already drop by 78 to 6,450 next year.
It comes two weeks after the Express & Star revealed a review of the force’s estate was being carried out.
Mr Jamieson said: “After £145m cuts since 2010 with the level of funding from government being squeezed year on year, I am having to find efficiencies to protect officer numbers.
“The £5m annual savings proposed in this strategy will help protect 100 police officer posts.”
Mr Jamieson added: “Crime is also changing and I need to ensure West Midlands Police has an estate that is equipped to help officers and staff respond to those crimes.
“Whilst the threats we face change, the public still need access to their police. That is why these proposals ensure that the current number of public contact offices will be maintained.”
How could plans for the Commonwealth Games and more housing in the Midlands be boosted?
Mr Jamieson said an events control suite to manage security around the Commonwealth Games would also be created as part of the strategy.
He added: “The Commonwealth Games coming to the region in 2022 will be a great occasion, but it will also require a huge amount of planning and improved facilities for West Midlands Police to help keep us all safe.”
And on the sale of the buildings, he said efforts would be made to ensure the closed sites would benefit local areas.
He said: “With the sale of each building, I will be asking West Midlands Police to examine the benefits to the local community.
“I am committed to ensuring that the police buildings sold as part of this process create real social value, in addition to freeing up money to protect police officer posts.
“Our region, like other areas, is facing a housing crisis.
“I am keen that the under-occupied police buildings can make a contribution to addressing that, as well helping support employment and other services.”
What's the Government view?
Policing Minister Nick Hurd MP recently praised West Midlands Police for reducing the number of Birmingham city centre leases it maintains and 'saving money' by increasing the capacity of the force's Lloyd House HQ.
“Officers and staff in the West Midlands do an excellent job keeping our communities safe and this refurbishment will not only save money, but will also mean they will have an improved working environment to carry out their vital duties,” he said.
Didn't a number of police stations already close?
The round of closures is not the first. In 2016 stations at Heath Town, Graisley, Oxley, Pennwood Court and Staveley House in Wolverhampton all closed.
In the same year Walsall Police Station in Green Lane closed with officers relocated to Bloxwich and the Civic Centre.
Dudley saw the Netherton station close in early 2016 with the town centre base also closing later that year with officers moving to council offices.
